Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
The debate over Canada’s health care system is dominating the start of the second week of the federal election campaign, with the Liberals repeating a promise to hire more family doctors and the Conservatives calling for an investigation into a Liberal Party Twitter video about privatized health care that the social media site has deemed manipulated.
Justin Trudeau, in Halifax today, announced that a re-elected Liberal government would spend $6-billion immediately toward the reduction of health care wait lists, as well as $3-billion over four years to hire 7,500 family doctors, nurses and nurse practitioners.
Meanwhile, a lawyer for the federal Conservatives has asked the Commissioner of Canada Elections to investigate a Liberal Party video of Mr. O’Toole, posted to Twitter on Sunday that the social media platform deemed “manipulated media.”
More election coverage:
Campbell Clark: The election campaign is shaping up to be shapeless – and that should scare Justin Trudeau
Editorial: The Conservative climate plan isn’t half bad. But the Liberal plan is better
Tax and Spend: Tory child-care proposal deducts income inequity, but not gender unfairness
O’Toole makes pledge on all Truth and Reconciliation Commission calls to action
Singh wants to end oil, gas subsidies, and fund renewable energy projects
Canadian federal election 2021: Latest updates and essential reading ahead of Sept. 20 vote
Current Prime Minister and Liberal leader of Canada Justin Trudeau grins during a visit to the riding of Malpeque in Cornwall, Prince Edward Island, Canada, August 22, 2021. REUTERS/John MorrisJOHN MORRIS/Reuters
Canada will support G7 sanctions against the Taliban, Trudeau says
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will push other G7 countries to consider new sanctions against the Taliban when the group of advanced economies meets virtually tomorrow to discuss the crisis in Afghanistan.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to push for further economic sanctions and to stop humanitarian aid if the hard-line Islamist rulers commit human-rights abuses and allow the country to be used as a haven for terrorists. Trudeau told reporters today that he will participate in the meeting and supports Johnson’s plan to clamp down on the Taliban.
More:
Deadly gunfire at Afghan airport; Taliban insist on U.S. pullout date
The Taliban have taken control of Afghanistan again. How did we get here?
Nova Scotia Court of Appeal rules to consider history of racism, marginalization in cases
The sentencing of Black offenders in Canada is on the verge of a dramatic change after Nova Scotia’s top court ruled that, as with Indigenous offenders, trial judges need to consider the history of racism and marginalization that shaped them, and do their utmost not to put them behind bars where appropriate.
The ruling illustrates the sharp turn that will now be demanded of Nova Scotia’s judges – a change in approach that could well spread to other provinces.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
B.C. to introduce vaccine card for activities, events, restaurants: British Columbia is introducing a vaccine card for residents to get access to venues and events. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said today that starting Sept. 13 a new order will require proof of having had a single dose of a vaccine to access certain social and recreational activities, as well as businesses.
Pfizer set to buy Canadian cancer drug developer in US$2.26-billion deal: The Toronto Stock Exchange is set to lose its most valuable Canadian biotechnology company for the second time this year after pharma giant Pfizer Inc. said today it would buy Trillium Therapeutics Inc. in a deal valuing the Mississauga blood cancer drug developer at US$2.26-billion.
Crews search for missing after Tennessee floods: Search crews worked through shattered homes and tangled debris on Monday, looking for about a dozen people still missing after record-breaking rain sent floodwaters surging through rural Tennessee, killing at least 22 people.
Multiple problems with Keystone XL pipeline, U.S. report finds: A U.S. government watchdog found multiple problems with the construction, manufacture and design of the Keystone pipeline, validating President Joe Biden’s decision to revoke the permit for a Keystone XL extension, leaders of several House Democratic committees said today.
MARKET WATCH
Canada’s main stock index inched toward record highs today as oil prices rebounded from a seven-day losing streak, while shares of drug developer Trillium nearly tripled on its acquisition by U.S. pharma major Pfizer. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.68 per cent to 20,477.26.
On Wall Street, U.S. stocks rallied and the Nasdaq reached an all-time closing high as investor optimism was boosted by full FDA approval of a COVID-19 vaccine and the Jackson Hole Symposium expected to convene later this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.61 per cent to 35,335.71, the S&P 500 gained 0.85 per cent to 4,479.53 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.55 per cent to 14,942.65.
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TALKING POINTS
Vaccine mandates without teeth are just performative promises
“We have to stop pandering to a small, loud minority of vaccine refuseniks, no matter how much whining and self-pitying bellyaching they do on social media. Hardcore refusal that endangers public health requires hardcore mandates.” - André Picard
Can Elections Canada keep up with democracy?
“Elections Canada is among our country’s most trusted public institutions – and deservedly so. The trouble is, Elections Canada is no longer up to the job – or rather, after 100 years, it’s time for its job to change.” - Peter MacLeod and Richard Johnson
LIVING BETTER
Foods to include in an asthma-friendly diet
Mounting evidence suggests that eating a healthy diet can help ease symptoms of asthma, a chronic condition affecting 11 per cent of Canadians. And the most protective foods to help you breathe easier, it seems, are no farther away than your refrigerator.
TODAY’S LONG READ
Grade 4 student from Elijah Smith Elementary School playing traditional games during the Yukon First Nation Education Directorate’s Salmon Camp at Helen’s Fish Camp on the traditional territory of the Ta’an Kwach'an Council on October 7, 2020.Alistair Maitland/The Globe and Mail
Yukon First Nations’ first-ever school board sets high hopes for a new kind of learning this year
A Grade 4 student at Jack Hulland Elementary School, in Whitehorse, pockets a fish eyeball as his class finishes its hourlong stint at culture camp. The group learned to filet Arctic char, sat in a canvas-wall tent listening to elders explain the lifecycle of salmon and munched on freshly fried bannock around a fire.
It’s a scene that would’ve been unheard of until recently – one made possible by the fledgling Yukon First Nation Education Directorate, which was launched just over a year ago in response to an education system that continues to fail First Nation students.
Evening Update is written by Omair Quadri. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.